


Son of a whore

by AvisPraeda



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Underage Sex, M/M, Mild Sexual Content, Post-Canon, Post-Time Skip, Route is kept vague just because, Trauma, Yuri's been through A LOT
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-18
Updated: 2020-02-18
Packaged: 2021-02-28 03:07:41
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,780
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22786918
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AvisPraeda/pseuds/AvisPraeda
Summary: While spending the evening together, an uncomfortable part of Yuri's past resurfaces.
Relationships: Yuris Leclair | Yuri Leclerc/My Unit | Byleth
Comments: 9
Kudos: 327





	Son of a whore

**Author's Note:**

> This is entirely because I was on TV tropes and I saw the entry implying that he was a child prostitute and oof that hurt. Literally just wrote this for myself bc I wanted him to address it but here enjoy it entirely unbeta'd lol.

Mere days after the war came to a close, the couple had wed. It was a quick, modest affair, though not a rushed one. Once the initial surprise had worn off—many hadn't been aware they were a _thing_ until the announcement—everyone agreed that it was for the best, given the colossal amounts of work both Byleth and Yuri had ahead of them. They had been so busy with immediate post-war duties, there wasn't even enough time to spend their wedding night together, let alone have a honeymoon. Neither complained, they simply savoured what little respite they got together all the more. Now, almost a month after the wedding, the couple finally had a chance to share an evening.

Byleth broke their kiss for air, and Yuri wasted no time trailing kisses down his throat, watching the Adam's apple bob as Byleth swallowed. A hand ran through Yuri's long hair as he stopped to nip at the collarbone, trying three different spots before he finally drew out a moan. His intentions to leave a mark were foiled when, after only a couple seconds of sucking a bruise into the skin, Byleth nudged his shoulder to get him off, then grabbed it and pulled him onto his stomach. Yuri allowed himself to roll over, curious to see what he had in mind, and propped himself up on his arms.

The hand at his shoulder slid over his front, trailing down to his nipple. It paused to roll and tease with the thumb while Byleth adjusted his position to hover over Yuri's back. Yuri groaned loudly for show, grinning when he heard Byleth suck in a breath, and the hand continued lower, slipping between his body and the sheets to rub along his stomach.

Yuri's gut roiled then, and all at once it felt like the room abruptly rocked sideways. He flinched despite himself, fingers grasping at the sheets, and a chuckle rose from behind him, deep and gravelly and far removed from Byleth's gentle laughter. The hand dragging across his stomach to his hip was large, rough with scars and calluses, nails sharp and uncut as they dug into the skin of Yuri's pelvis hard enough to hurt. His nose became assaulted with the pungent mix of alcohol, body odor, and sickly sweet cologne, and he had to stifle a cough, swallow hard, and duck his head, inhaling sharply through grit teeth to hold his breath. Despite the way his skin crawled, he lifted his hips up to grind—he knew the man would like that. Sure enough the large, sweat-slicked body pressed hot right against his bare back, pinning him down to the bed, and the moan right against his ear was loud and appreciative. His response was to tilt his head to the side and offer up his neck. Just play along like he'd gotten so good at, maybe flash a look full of need, it'd be over and done with soon enough.

“Yuri?”

Byleth's voice made him blink, huffing out the breath in his chest in surprise. There was no weight on his body at all, save for the feather-light touch of fingers on the small of his back, and the air was clear and crisp from the cracked open window. He was almost a little cold. He rolled onto his side to look back at Byleth curiously, but the question of why he stopped died on his tongue when Yuri found him sitting on the bed, met with Byleth's worried frown.

“Are you okay?” Byleth asked softly. “You suddenly went quiet and tensed up.”

“Oh.” For a split second he was at a loss for how to reply, but his recovery was quick, and he smiled and waved his hand. “It's nothing, just surprised me is all. Don't let that stop you.”

Rather than assuage his concerns, it only made Byleth's frown deepen, and Yuri immediately knew he slipped up somehow. Could he have worded it differently? Did his body language not match? Perhaps, some of his muscles were still wound tight from the memory. Byleth reached out to lightly grab Yuri's shoulder, urging him to sit up, and Yuri complied.

“Yuri.” And there was _that_ tone, the 'I know you're hiding something' one. He'd gotten much better at sniffing out Yuri's secrets since they first met, but then again, he wasn't doing a stellar job at deflecting suspicion this time. “I want us to both enjoy this. If you're not comfortable, please say something.”

Ah, that's how he messed up. 'You' instead of 'us.' Of course Byleth would pick up on a nuance like that. But did it really matter? Yuri chuckled softly and shook his head. “You never let anything slip by, huh? Alright, I'll be more vocal. In more ways than one, if you'd like that.”

His attempt at flustering Byleth proved fruitless as he still didn't appear convinced, and now Yuri was getting anxious. It shouldn't have been a big deal to talk about, just another thing he did willingly to get what he wanted, yet this one issue still caught on his tongue, and not for the first time. He kept conversation about it short and flippant, only covering surface details and scarcely dwelling deeper. Only once with Byleth did he share more, and even then he'd left out many crucial details, including the scathing self-perception it instilled. A body that had been touched by numerous, slimy hands, used and filthy, only masked by his natural beauty and charm. Another tool to be rented out for personal gain.

Byleth wouldn't think any differently of him, proven time and time again as the details of his life gradually surfaced. The man already had half of the story, and if he could turn a blind eye to murder then this would be nothing. Yet he couldn't force the knot in his stomach to unravel—the “what happened” wasn't the issue, but the “ _when._ ”

Byleth hadn't said a word, but Yuri felt like he was being interrogated with the way he searched his face intently, trying to seek out the unspoken answers. One hell of a stare, that one. Finally, he sighed and raised his hands in surrender. “Fine, fine. Got hit with a bad memory from a while ago. I've told you about some of it, right? Almost certain I mentioned it.”

“Yeah, a couple times.” Byleth withdrew his hand from Yuri's shoulder hesitantly. “Did... did I accidentally touch somewhere that brought it back?”

He grimaced, letting his arms drop back down, placing one hand on the bed to lean. “Nah, just happened out of the blue. I didn't think _that_ of all things would come back to me, given my ever expanding laundry list of experiences. It's barely ever on my mind.”

“The war was hard.” Goddess, Byleth's voice was so soft, and without a trace of pity. Only empathy and understanding and warmth. “It's no surprise that some things will haunt you, and it's nothing to be ashamed of—Both what happened, and being bothered by it.”

Yuri couldn't keep eye contact, shifting his gaze to the bed frame at the far end. “It wasn't during the war.”

Byleth tilted his head, and Yuri continued while he was processing. “Well, yes, I did engage a bit during those five years too, but only in a pinch. People were too busy plotting and fighting to have any time for that. Worked out pretty nicely for me, given the circumstances.”

“Not during the war. But that means...” Byleth's eyes widened. “Yuri, you were—”

“It didn't matter how old I was. You'd be shocked—and justifiably disgusted—at how many people, common folk and nobles alike, were into that. If that's what it took to get what I wanted, then those were the cards I willingly played, no matter how depraved. Hated every moment. I haven’t the foggiest idea how my mother managed for so long without complaining. She’s by far the strongest woman I know.”

A hand brushed against his cheek. Yuri met Byleth's sorrowful expression, and he came so, _so_ close to ending it there just to try and dispel that frown, but he'd already gotten this far. Might as well bring the rest into the light.

“I knew it wouldn't change your perception of me. You're not that shallow. It felt unfair to unload the unpleasant details on you, since it's my problem to overcome, but perhaps I should've told you sooner...” He shook his head. “Doesn't matter, it's out in the open now. And this is where I admit that I've never done this without some ulterior motive, or with someone I have genuine feelings for, and it's proving difficult to convince myself that this is different. That I'm not just using my body as a means to an end. Though one could argue that the end would be seeing you smile, in this case.”

“Yuri, I... I'm so sorry.”

“Don't be. It's in the past. All I can do now is move forward.”

“But it's still affecting you. If there's anything I can do to help, you can tell me. As you said, it won't change how I see you, or my feelings for you.” Byleth stopped to think for a moment, brushing his chin with his finger. “Actually, we don't even have to do this now, you know. Honestly, I never understood the whole 'consummation' thing. I doubt anyone is going to care.”

Yuri almost laughed, both flattered and surprised at how quickly Byleth jumped to offer support. “Sheesh, slow down. I didn't say we had to stop. I'll just need a bit to... adjust.”

They stared at each other for a moment, then Byleth's hand left his chin and covered Yuri's. Despite everything it still made his heart flutter. “What do you want to do?”

That gave him pause. What _did_ he want? The immediate answer on his lips was he wanted to see Byleth happy, but he knew that wouldn't suffice in this situation, nor would the next one down the list: he wanted to spend time with Byleth regardless of what they were doing, as just being beside his husband—Goddess, he was still getting used to that—instilled a peace he hadn't known in years. That wouldn't fit the question really being asked.

So he went with the third option, adjusting his hand to thread their fingers together. “Right now, I want to kiss you. Start from the beginning and try again. Just... let me look at you, this time.”

Byleth nodded slowly, shifting to comfortably lean in closer to Yuri's face. “Alright. And remember—”

“Yeah, yeah, I'll speak up. You have my word.”

**Author's Note:**

> Comments are much appreciated as they are my lifeblood
> 
> This isn't meant to glorify child sexual abuse or demonize sex work btw, just in case :(


End file.
